Energy Plot 4 - Solar and Wind

On to renewable energies, finally.
So renewable energies are good. We need to use them, if we hope to continue to have energy in the future. So far, we're not doing a very good job. We do have some renewable energies floating around, but it's only a tine fraction of our total energy use (I blame the fossil fuel companies that have all the money and influence).
Even so, no renewable energy is perfect.

Solar is one of the most popular renewable energies. And why not? The sun is the source of almost all energy on earth (except geothermal). It's also responsible in some way for most of our other energy sources. So gathering that energy directly from solar panels should be great.
And it is pretty great. The efficiency of solar panels has been improving amazingly, and solar panels can easily pay for themselves a few times over during their lifetimes.
But solar panels aren't the best option in every place. For example, my house is shaded by huge trees for most of the day. So, we could use solar panels, but they wouldn't be as efficient at our house as they would be on a different block. And some parts of the world just don't get as much sunshine. Some solar panels do work even if they're not hit by direct sunlight, but not as effectively.
And obviously, solar panels aren't gonna work very well at night. Although peak energy use is during the day, so solar can contribute to filling some of that need. Solar energy can be stored too, but some storage methods are better than others. For example, batteries have toxic chemicals in them. I've heard that magnets are a good way to store solar energy.
Also, there are dangerous and nonrenewable chemicals in solar panels. But the effects of these could be very tiny if solar panels are recycled after they stop working. Not everything can be reused, but much of it can.
Another great way to make use of solar energy is by solar hot water. For this, you put tanks of water on your roof, and the water is heated by the sun. You have hot water whenever you need it. And if you have a swimming pool, it can be heated enough to feel like a bath. This saves a lot of energy and water that are usually needed to heat up water for your showers.

Wind energy is another good one. Like solar, a windmill will easily pay for itself before too long, and wind probably won't run out in any foreseeable future.
And while wind mills can take a lot of space (some are absolutely massive) they can also be set up on the oceans.
But wind energy is only really effective in certain areas. AKA areas that get good wind. And there's lots of areas that have good wind. But the areas with good wind aren't necessarily areas with high population and energy use that need extra power.
And plenty of people think windmills are big and ugly and don't want them mucking up the landscapes of ocean views (I think they're much more attractive than a lot of buildings).
Small windmills are also a major hazard to birds. The faster-spinning propellers can smash up a bird pretty good, and raptors especially seem to be in danger of this (Cats actually cause at least a hundred times more bird deaths, but those are small birds - not large birds). The larger, slower wind turbines aren't as much of a problem, and there are ways to deter birds from wind farms.
Windmills can also contain nonrenewable resources.